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Private sector lender Yes Bank has raised $255 million ($180 million and €58 million) from overseas through a dual currency, multi-tenor syndicated loan facility. This is the first syndicated loan deal after RBI offered the swap facility last week.

Banks have begun tapping a new concessional swap facility for overseas fundraising, one of a spate of measures the central bank has taken to attract offshore funds to support the battered rupee.

Under the programme launched on September 10, banks can borrow overseas up to 100 per cent of their tier 1 capital level with some riders which some bankers say may deter overseas lenders.

Previously, it did not make sense for Indian lenders to borrow overseas as the cost was higher after swapping the dollar fund into rupee. The new RBI facility allows banks to borrow overseas at 100 basis points below the market rate, making it competitive source of funding.

Yes Bank said it will use the money for general corporate purposes and trade finance.

The facility has a maturity of one and two years with majority commitments coming in the two-year tenure bucket. The loan has been widely distributed with commitments from 11 banks representing eight countries across the US, Europe, the Middle East and Australia, said the bank.